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Hungarian capital braces for floods as Danube waters rise

The crest of the flood-swollen Danube River is surging toward the Hungarian capital of Budapest, while communities along the Elbe in Germany are bracing for high water as the river churns toward the North Sea.

Death toll rises to 17 as water levels in southern Germany stabilize

The crest of the flood-swollen Danube River surged toward the Hungarian capital of Budapest on Friday, while communities along the Elbe in Germany braced for high water as the river churned toward the North Sea.

Elsewhere in central Europe, communities were beginning to count the cost of devastating floods that have hit Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Hungary, Slovakia, Poland and the Czech Republic.

At least 19 people have died over the past week, and experts say the economic damage in Germany alone could top 11 billion euros ($14.96 billion).

The Danube’s crest left Austria on Friday and entered Hungary, where Prime Minister Viktor Orban warned that water levels were above the all-time highs.

"It is now certain that we must face the largest-ever flood on the Danube, so we must be prepared for the worst," Orban said in the western city of Gyor, on the Danube.

The Danube crest was expected to reach Budapest on Monday, and Mayor Istvan Tarlos said that in a worst-case scenario up to 55,000 people may need to be evacuated. But he was confident that only the lowest-lying areas of the city would be exposed to the Danube’s expanded flow.

Tarlos said the Danube was expected to rise to around 8.95 metres in the downtown area, while the walls along the river and temporary defenses would be able to keep out waters rising to as much as 9.3 metres.

Farther upstream in Hungary, about 900 people had to leave their homes because of the flood.

Preparing for the worst

In neighbouring Slovakia, the situation was critical in the border city of Komarno where the Danube was still rising and was expected to do so till Saturday. Rescuers, soldiers and volunteers have been filling sand bags to reinforce protective barriers.

In the Czech Republic, the government’s central crisis committee ordered local authorities to leave all flood protection measures in place because meteorologists have forecast a risk of heavy rains for the next few days and the situation might get worse again.

"The flooding is not over yet," Czech Prime Minister Petr Necas.

In Germany, meanwhile, water levels were stabilizing in the south and east, even as the crest of the Elbe rolled northward.

Authorities in Magdeburg, the state capital of Saxony-Anhalt, reported that water levels in the Elbe were higher than during record floods the region experienced in 2002. Since then, flood defences have been significantly upgraded.

The German military said some 11,300 soldiers were helping build sandbag barriers and flying helicopters over flood zones to ensure levees and dams were holding.

A 74-year-old man died after he was hit by a vehicle carrying sandbags in the eastern town of Wittenberg. Five other flood-related deaths have been recorded in Germany, 10 in the Czech Republic, two in Austria and one each in Slovakia and Switzerland.